Documentation

Specimens Tested

There are two ways to survey the full list of specimens analyzed for this research.

Specimens Tested Table
In the table following the text below, we list the unique “IMLS Number” assigned to each specimen and some basic information associated with that specimen, including a thumbnail photo that links to a larger image in the Iowa Digital Library (IDL). Note that this table is not sortable. It proceeds by IMLS number, roughly by date of origin, from oldest to most recent. Dates with an asterisk are “soft dates,” as described below. Click on any thumbnail to go to the full record for that specimen and a higher resolution image. Under the “Leaf type” column heading, msb = manuscript book, msl = manuscript leaf, pl = printed leaf, pb = printed book, bl = blank leaf, and ap = art print.

IDL Specimens Tested Sortable Record
Alternatively, view the specimens tested in the Iowa Digital Libraries. This list can be sorted by clicking on the column headings. Clicking on “Year” resorts the entire record, from the oldest specimen tested to the most recent or vice versa. Clicking on “Delta L* or “Delta a*” does the same for both color scales (white to black, and less red to more red, respectively. Once in the IDL listing click on the IMLS number or the photo to bring up a high-resolution image and, below it, a full record of the data associated with the specimen. Clicking on any of the blue highlighted fields (“printed book,” “English,” etc.) will display all other specimens in the collection in that same field. Clicking on “Advanced Search” in the top menu bar provides other search options. “Year” refers to the date of printing or writing if known. If only a date range was given in the catalogue information for a specimen, the range appears under “Date of Origin” and the specimen is given a “soft date” for plotting purposes (usually a relatively late date: 1440, for example, for a range of 1350–1450). If data is missing or was not recorded in a particular field for a specimen, the words “no data” appear. Click on your browser’s Back button or close the IDL window to return to the main website. Note that zeros have been added to some delta L* values to aid in sorting and plotting, and that “delta L*” and “delta a*” appear as “delta L” and “delta a” due to restrictions on the use of the asterisk symbol in the database.

Photos
All photos were taken with a Nikon D80 camera. Note that the photographs were taken for identification purposes only and tend to vary in quality. Higher quality images can usually be negotiated if needed, by contacting the institution owning the specimen. All images were opened in Adobe Bridge CS5 Camera Raw 6.1 and passed through Auto Correction for common adjustments to exposure, recovery, fill light, blacks, brightness, and contrast. The images were then saved in high-quality JEPG format. Photos of the specimens, when sorted in order of delta L* or delta a* color, occasionally do not appear to follow the trend; i.e., a darker image appears in the midst of lighter papers or vice versa. This could be a result of incorrect data for that specimen, differing lighting and camera settings, and/or the fact the delta L* and delta a* scales represent particular color characteristics and not the more complex color seen in the photograph.

Leaf dimensions
All leaf dimensions are given in centimeters, first in height (h) and then in width (w). The original mould/deckle dimensions can be estimated from these leaf dimensions. For example, if the mould/deckle for making a full sheet is known to be 30 × 46 cm (h × w), the expected leaf dimensions (h × w) would be

30 × 23 cm for a folio leaf (folded half of full sheet),
23 × 15 cm for a quarto leaf (folded half of half full sheet), and
15 × 11.5 cm for an octavo leaf (folded half of quarter full sheet).

Note that the h × w measurements rarely represent the full dimensions of the original mould/deckle because of natural sheet shrinkage during papermaking or trimming during bookbinding. If the starting full sheet was larger or smaller, the range of leaf sizes changes accordingly.